The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation Council witnessed significant disruption and procedural setbacks during elections to constitute its crucial standing committees on Wednesday. The process was marred by invalidated votes, postponed elections, and an impending draw of lots to decide a key committee's leadership.
Invalid Votes Mar Electoral Process
In an embarrassing turn of events, the vote cast by BJP councillor R Sreelekha was declared invalid during the election for town planning committee members. Officials confirmed that her ballot was rejected because she failed to write her name and sign on the back of the ballot paper, a mandatory procedural requirement.
Similarly, the vote of LDF councillor R P Sivaji met the same fate during the election for the tax appeal standing committee. His vote was invalidated due to unspecified technical reasons, highlighting lapses in adherence to election guidelines by representatives from both major political fronts.
Multiple Committee Elections Postponed
The council faced a broader logistical crisis as elections to five of the eight standing committees had to be postponed to Friday. This delay was caused by an insufficient number of nominations received for these panels.
The committees that could not be constituted include:
- Finance Standing Committee
- Development Standing Committee
- Health Standing Committee
- Public Works Standing Committee
- Education and Sports Standing Committee
Corporation Secretary Jahamgeer S explained the situation, stating that each committee has a fixed strength. Four committees require 13 members, while the others need 12. Five committees are currently short of members. The vacancies will be filled through a fresh round of nominations scheduled for Friday, as per Rule 7(5) of the Standing Committee election guidelines, which mandates a new election within five days if sufficient nominations are not received.
Draw of Lots and Internal Discord
In a key development, the tax appeal standing committee is likely to select its chairperson through a draw of lots. This unusual step became necessary after both the BJP and the LDF secured an equal number of seats on the panel, resulting in a deadlock.
Amidst this confusion, the welfare standing committee was formed without a contest after receiving the required 13 nominations, making a poll unnecessary.
Sources indicate that internal differences within the BJP-led council are a primary contributor to the delays and confusion. Despite holding a simple majority with the support of an independent councillor, disagreements over committee allocations and objections to conceding the tax appeal committee chair to the opposition have hampered the process. If the shortfall in nominations persists after Friday's round, councillors not serving on any committee will be assigned to fill the remaining seats.
